Despite several updates to the story first reported by Bloomberg last night that the Democratic National Convention's "move" of its "celebration" originally scheduled to take place at Charlotte Motor Speedway is really a cancellation likely driven by money problems, the Associated Press has not updated its virtual relay of the DNC's related press release published late last night.
Additionally, in its brief story on Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill's decision not to attending the convention, the AP made no reference to the nine other prominent Democratic Party politicians who have decided they'd be better off not being seen in the same convention venue with their party's incumbent presidential candidate.
The AP has been behind on the DNC "celebration" story from the start. Two hours before AP's exercise in stenography last night, Bloomberg was already reporting that the DNC was facing a $27 million deficit and that it was considering canceling the "celebration."
Today, though the DNC is denying it is having any kind of problems, Bloomberg is reporting that the DNC has only generated $10 million in contributions out of its $36.6 million funding goal. The AP, disgracefully, has nothing.
The self-described Essential Global News Network also failed to note in its story about McCaskill to note that at least nine other prominent Democrat politicians aren't going to be in Charlotte. ABC named most of them. The leftist Talking Points Memo web site has a slide show of all of them (so far).
The list, besides McCaskill:
- Sen. Jon Tester (Democrat-in-Hiding, Montana)
- Sen. Joe Manchin (DIH, West Virginia)
- Governor Earl Ray Tomblin (DIH, West Virginia)
- Rep. Nick Rahall (DIH, West Virginia)
- Rep. Jim Matheson (DIH, Utah)
- Rep. Mark Critz (DIH, Pennsylvania)
- Rep. Kathy Hochul (DIH, New York)
- Rep. Bill Owens (DIH, New York)
In the old days, it might have been on point to note that AP might stand for "Administration's Protection." But given that there are so many other news sources reporting on what may be a record post-civil rights era level of non-attendees at a major party convention, and that Drudge has been headlining the DNC's financial issues all day, the term "Absolutely Pathetic" is what really applies here. I suppose the wire service's Obama protectors are taking solace in the fact that most subscribing outlets won't be able to run anything without going elsewhere. The subscribing outlets should really be thinking about going elsewhere permanently.
And of course, there isn't a chance in the world that AP would be ignoring either type of story if they concerned the Republican National Convention.
Cross-posted at BizzyBlog.com.
